Real Madrid Appoint Lopetegui to Replace Zidane

12 Junio 2018

Subscribe to our SMS sports service by texting 'SPORTS' to 22840. Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino had initially emerged as the leading candidate to replace the Frenchman. That U21 side featured the likes of David De Gea, Thiago, Koke and Rodrigo Moreno, all of whom have made it into the Spain squad for this summer's World Cup.

Zinedine Zidane walked away from his post at Real Madrid after the Champions League final, having won the competition three times in a row. They head into the World Cup as among the favorites to win a title they claimed in 2010, and are on a 20-game unbeaten run.

The man who Lopetegui replaced in the Spain hotseat perhaps provides the best guide in how to do both jobs successfully.

Lopetegui has never lost a match as Spain coach since taking the reins in July 2016 in the wake of the European Championship, earning 14 wins with six draws for the second-longest unbeaten start by a coach in Spain's history.

Julen Lopetegui will be the coach of Real Madrid after the 2018 World Cup in Russia.

Spain hit 36 goals in 10 World Cup qualifying games and played exciting football, something demanded at Madrid.

The Spain international finished the 2017-18 season without silverware despite his heroic performances for Manchester United. Perhaps the biggest beneficiary is playmaker Isco.

"Julen Lopetegui will be the Real Madrid coach after the celebration of the 2018 World Cup", read the statement on the club's official website.

The uncertainty now within the Spanish capital has also forced Bale to hold off on his decision regarding his future, with it reported that he had compiled a shortlist of potential clubs he wishes to join. "He has extraordinary players and a coach who has given him a plus".